Displaced
by Slaud
Summary: I never thought I would wake up in the Mass Effect universe. I swear I am still dreaming. Mass Effect SI shortly before Shepard is revived by Cerberus. Multiple pairings.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Mass Effect universe, or anything related to it.**

**Displaced**

**Chapter 1**

Silence is not something that I personally enjoy waking up to. Nor was it something I was used to. Usually I could hear the door opening, and slamming shut in the rat race that was a working mom's daily routine. Usually I would wake up to the gentle hum of the fan that I kept on simply for the comfort the familiar noise brought to me. Usually I would wake to the feeling of the soft blankets surrounding my body, the smell of coffee drifting into my room. Now; however, I was waking up to complete silence and the familiar smells of a hospital room. Bright lights flooded into my vision as I returned to the conscious world and slowly cracked my eyes open. I clamped my eye lids shut almost immediately. That wasn't right. My room was always as dark as could be, to the point where it was blinding. I enjoyed waking up that way.

Now fully conscious I lay completely still and willed my chaotic mind to slow down and think. Whatever I was laying on was not the warm softness of my bed, but rather a cold, unyielding metal that sent chills up my spine, raising goose bumps all over my body. I knew something was wrong. I was always a calm person, hardly ever letting anything shake my calm demeanor but this was pushing my ability to its very limits. I was not in the safety of my home; I was completely vulnerable, with no recollection of how or when I managed to arrive here. Wherever here was that is. I took a chance and slowly opened my eyes once again, letting my pupils adjust to the bright white light that was coming from several lamps hanging above me. As the environment around me began to come into focus I recognized it immediately. I had seen it enough times to remember what an operation room looked like from the viewpoint of a patient.

By now my heart was threatening to beat out of my chest. My eyes darted around the room, taking note that it was completely empty aside from the operating table I was laying on. Sitting up I looked around some more, before looking down at my body. What I saw made me narrow my eyes in focus.

At five foot eleven weighing in at around 150 pounds of pure muscle, I wasn't the biggest guy out there, but I certainly wasn't the smallest. I was intimately familiar with every detail of my body, the strength of each muscle, what sort of effort it took to perform certain tasks, etc. The body I was looking at was not what I had become accustomed to after 20 years of living. The body I was looking at looked like the body that belonged to a seasoned and highly trained soldier. The thickness of every part of my body had thickened considerably, the once subtle traces of muscle where instead replaced by thick, corded strands and bunches of muscle. Looking over the bod- my new body in awe I clenched my hands into fists repeatedly, admiring the way the muscles contracted visibly. If I had to guess I would have put my new body at around 230 pounds, and considerably taller than my previous body at around six foot three inches tall.

_New body. Check. Great and all… But where the fuck _am_ I? _I questioned to myself. I remembered falling asleep reading Fanfiction the night before, having just finished catching up on a long 400k word Mass Effect SI. My last thought before I fell asleep had been along the lines of: _Would be pretty neat to end up in the Mass Effect world._ I almost slapped myself as I came back to reality, my eyes widening considerably in alarm.

"No fucking way." I growled out, my deep voice vibrating throughout the small white room. I hauled myself up off of the table, landing lightly on my bare feet. I was wearing a pair of lose fitting boxers, nothing more.

Standing I took a moment to notice that I felt considerably lighter, despite my obvious increase in mass. I was always extremely light on my feet and agile, so that was definitely saying something. _Let's find out what's going on, shall we? _I thought to myself as I spun around slowly, taking in every small detail of the room. There was the metallic operating table in the center of the room, along with two fluorescent lights held by moveable arms that descended from the otherwise smooth ceiling. The floors and walls were a light grey, and didn't seem to have the annoying light reflection that most hospital floors seemed to have. I then noticed a medium sized metallic sliding door behind the table, a double take confirmed that it was indeed a door, and looked alarmingly similar to the doors found in the Mass Effect games. This door in particular donned a symbol I was hoping I wouldn't see. _Cerberus, the 'pro-human' terrorist organization ran by the illusive man. Timmy. _I thought to myself and almost laughed as I recalled the nickname players had given The Illusive Man. I shook my head, focusing on figuring out what was going on. I clenched my fists, knuckles popping as I narrowed my eyes and squared my shoulders, moving forward with long, quiet strides towards the door. Before I could reach the familiar green panel the door slid open with a quiet 'whoosh' of air revealing a man and a woman, both decked out in white and grey lab coats, The Cerberus insignia on each of their coats marking them as Cerberus doctors. They looked startled to see me standing there glaring at them. Looking behind them as they stopped, I noticed a guard with a hand on his pistol watching me intently from across the narrow hallway outside the small room.

"Well I see you're awake at least." The Doctor deadpanned, effectively drawing my attention back to him.

I shifted my weight and leveled my piercing grey eyes on the man before me. Taking a moment to let the unspoken threat hang in the air, I asked the obvious question. "Where am I?"

The doctor looked at me and gulped before activating what I recognized as an omni-tool that glowed the same yellow that Cerberus was known for sporting. I must have come across more threatening than I was accustomed to being. I realized then that I was actually towering over the average sized man, easily more than a head taller than him. I focused once again as the man's omni-tool beeped, a screen appearing revealing a familiar face surrounded by long black hair.

_Miranda Lawson. Of course she would be involved if this is a Cerberus facility. _I reasoned to myself.

"What is it?" Miranda's icy voice cut through the tense silence. Her eyes narrowed at the doctor before her.

"The patient, he is awake, Ma'am." The doctor stuttered out, quickly glancing up at me then back down at the image of Miranda. Meanwhile the Nurse took a step forward drawing my attention and spoke up, "E-excuse me sir, but if you could please take a seat on the table. All will be answered in a moment." To her credit she seemed to be mostly unafraid, as if she was used to this sort of thing. _It wouldn't surprise me_. I chuckled to myself in my head. _Now that I know I'm in the mass effect universe I wonder what year it is. _I nodded slowly at the nurse before taking a step back, returning my attention to the doctor and Miranda. I saw her get up from what I assumed was her desk and closed the vid call. I figured she was on her way here now. _Wouldn't surprise me either. Wonder if she's as hot as she was in the game. Probably more so now that I think about it._ I shook my head, clearing it of the line of thought before sitting heavily on the table.

The doctor came up to me and offered his hand, which I took out of habit more than anything, and gave a rather firm handshake, considering I was used to much weaker hands. I saw the doctor cringe slightly before speaking up. "My name is Dr. Caine, I was overseeing your recovery and will be overseeing your rehabilitation."

"Recovery? Rehabilitation? What do you mean?" I wondered aloud. The doctor tilted his head slightly before typing something into the data pad he was holding, as if making a note. "If you would but wait a moment sir, my boss will be here shortly to explain."

_Speak of the devil, and he shall appear. _I thought as the door opened once again, revealing the one and only Miranda Lawson in all her glory. _Or she, in this case._ I muttered darkly.

The doctor stepped aside as Miranda approached and I took the opportunity to take in her appearance. She was clad in the trademark white and black cat. Her heels clicked along the floor as she moved, her movements graceful and deadly. I hadn't expected her to live up to the hype, but she did without question. The perfect female body, engineered from the genetic level up by her father. My eyes narrowed slightly, meeting her piercing blue eyes with my own hardened gaze.

She looked me over slowly before finally speaking, "You caused quite a stir around here, showing up out of nowhere in one of our reactor rooms in a massive surge of Radioactive energy." She states matter-of-fact like, raising a perfectly curved eyebrow, as if questioning me. I knew she was.

My gaze narrowed as I zoned out, my mind working in overdrive to process the information she had just revealed to me. _Massive surge of radioactive energy… element zero reactor… Could have likely caused a core meltdown and or explosion. _I was putting together the pieces of the puzzle quickly, based on what I knew of the Mass Effect universe and reactors in general. Ignoring her unspoken question looked back up at her, "Let me guess, the energy surge caused the reactor to destabilize."

She nodded, seeming slightly impressed with my deductive reasoning. "Yes, and by all account you should be dead. The amount of radiation you were exposed to should have killed you, not even to consider the amount of Element Zero you were exposed to."

My eyes widened slightly, "Eezo exposure…" I mumbled to myself, becoming lost in the depths of my own mind once again as my thoughts raced, I knew that even small amounts of Element Zero exposure could result in biotic abilities manifesting in an individual. I lightly shook my head again, focusing on reality once more. "Alright, so I should have died. Why am I still alive?" I asked. I had a hunch, but didn't want to jump to conclusions.

"We saved you, and reconstructed your body, enhancing it in many ways, as you have without a doubt noticed already." She stated, folding her arms across her midsection and shifting her weight mostly to one leg.

"Why save me?" I questioned her. "I am not normally one to question a good thing, but I am aware you had no reason to save me, much less reason to enhance my body using cybernetics." _I'm assuming it was with cybernetics anyways. It would explain a lot. _I thought to myself.

"You catch on quick, don't you?" She grins slightly before continuing, "My employer tasked us with saving and enhancing you was he wanted information from you. He wishes to speak with you directly."

"The-" I cut myself off quickly, realizing that I shouldn't give away how much I know without reason. It could end up saving my life. "Your employer you say? Alright, I'll speak with him, but first could I get some clothes to wear?" I had never been someone that was ashamed of my own body, much less now, but going to meet the illusive man wearing nothing but a pair of lose fitting boxers was not something I wanted to do. Certainly not at the top of my bucket list, despite how funny it might be.

Miranda, "Alright Mister…?" She trailed off, obviously fishing for a name to call me by. I stared hard at her as I thought about how to answer her. _I could simply giver her my real name, as I likely don't exist in the registry at all, Or I could give her an alias. _I mulled it over in my head for a moment before deciding. "My name is Taylor, Miss…?" I settled on my middle name while feigning ignorance about her name. _ I know a hell of a lot more than just your name, Lawson._

"Miranda Lawson." She stated, eyeing me critically. I got the feeling she was trying to decide if I was telling the truth or not but I didn't get to dwell on it long before a man carrying some folded up clothes with a pair of black combat style boots resting on top came through the door. He handed to me and I nodded in thanks. I dropped the boots on the floor, and pulled on the dark grey fatigues and tight white t-shirt. The shirt had a Cerberus logo stamped on the shoulder, something I wasn't entirely pleased with but it would do for now. I pulled the boots onto my feet and nodded to Miranda. I followed her out of the door and into the long white hallway.

"Always disliked hospitals." I said aloud as I looked around. I got the feeling this was a space station, given the size of the hallways and the lack of windows. Miranda didn't respond, keeping true to the ice queen personality she was famous for. I took a moment to look at her back, trailing my eyes down her body. The suit did wonders to compliment her figure. _Not the time or the place, idiot. _I mentally berated myself, shaking my head once more. Guess it was going to become a regular occurrence.

We stopped a minute or so later, a large door opened after Miranda swiped her omni-tool over the red holo panel. The room beyond was completely dark save a glowing circle in the center. From memory I knew what it was. "A Quantum entanglement communicator, neat." I said mostly to myself.

"Well Mr. Taylor, you seem to know quite a few things, don't you?" Miranda said, looking over her shoulder at me. I only shrugged in non-commitment. Her gaze hardened slightly, "Anyways, He will want to speak with you alone. I will be waiting outside." She strode out of the room, leaving me alone as the door shut behind her.

I nodded, rolling my large shoulders casually. "Sure thing, Lawson." I knew I was likely going to get under her skin with my overall attitude, but that was something to worry about later. I was about to meet the illusive man. Jack mother fucking Harper of all people.

I stepped into the circle on the floor, grunting as the QEC fired up, encompassing me with the familiar yellow grids before the darkness of the room fled, revealing The Illusive man, puffing away at a cigarette as usual. I fought the urge to roll my eyes.

"Greetings Mr. Taylor, I have been expecting you. How are you finding your new body?" The man said, followed up by a long drag on his cigarette.

I looked down at my hands, clenching my fists before nodding in approval. "I like it. Cybernetics are in play no doubt. There's also the chance That I have developed Biotic powers due to the Element Zero exposure. Question is, how did I end up in that situation in the first place?" I thought aloud.

"So you don't know." He said, taking yet another drag on his cigarette. "Interesting." He said simply, looking over me with a pair of unnerving eyes. I shrugged, "No, I don't actually know how I ended up tumbling into that reactor room, and I'll be damned if I know why you spent so many resources giving me a new body. I know it must have not been a cheap undertaking." I replied, mostly fishing for answers.

The Illusive Man regarded me for a long moment before finally responding, "When you appeared in one of our reactor rooms, the radiation surge from your arrival set off a chain reaction, causing the reactor to melt down and explode, exposing you to deadly levels of Element Zero and, as you seem to already know, even a small amount of exposure can cause biotic abilities to manifest in an individual, Mr. Taylor. When Miss Lawson's team was rebuilding your body, they discovered that your immune system was mostly non-existent in comparison to the average human, and that you had never been exposed to eezo before, meaning you had never traveled by way of FTL. These two facts combined led the remaining portions of your body to adapt quickly to the eezo and accept it rather than purging it from your system. An anomaly if you will. You can likely put together why this leaves me curious, Mr. Taylor." He concluded before flicking his cigarette and taking another long drag. It seemed he needed the cigarette like one would need air, or water.

I nodded after a moment, understanding completely. _So I have eezo nodes inside my body, awesome! I wonder how long it will take me to use my biotic powers._ I thought to myself. "Yes, I think that is a valid reason for being curious, sir." I had decided that I would play ignorant and see if I could take advantage of Cerberus's resources to learn how to best utilize my new body, learn how to use my biotic powers, and catch up on the happenings of the universe. Which reminded me, "How long was I unconscious, and what is the current date?" I assumed that the reconstruction of my body would have taken quite a while, as it was not an exact science, especially if it was before Shepard was rebuilt.

"Interesting question, Mr. Taylor." Timmy regarded me for a moment before answering, "You have been unconscious for roughly 6 months, and the current date is May 20th, 2185." Taking another draw from his cigarette, the illusive man waited patiently for a response.

_6 months. Meaning I arrived in December, 2184. Shepard has been under reconstruction for over a year now. I have about 5 months until he/she should be waking up. Shit I don't know I it's a he or a she. _I sighed, rubbing my face. "6 months is a long time to be under. So what all did you folks here at Cerberus do to me?" I asked, almost casually, my steel grey eyes boring into the man before me.

"We enhanced your body, rebuilt it to be stronger, tougher, faster. Created more room for the large Eezo nodes deposited all over inside your body. You have an L-5n implant to help with controlling your biotic powers, along with other cybernetic enhancements." He puffed on his cigarette before snuffing it, and lighting another before finishing. "We took a few liberties."

_L-5n implants. awesome I will be able to biotically charge. _I mentally cheered before calming myself. _Cybernetics and increased overall body mass and size to help deal with the large amount of Eezo in my system. An extremely deadly combination, but at what cost I wonder… _I trailed off inside my own head, picking up with my voice. "So what's the catch?" I knew that Cerberus wouldn't go through so much trouble or expend so many resources if they didn't have an ulterior motive. _I have a bad feeling about this._

To his credit, if the Illusive man was surprised he didn't show it, merely regarded me for a moment before bringing up a screen, and what I saw surprised me to say the least. Shepard's reconstruction progress. Project Lazarus. I managed to contain myself and kept a mostly blank expression, I didn't want The Illusive Man to know that I knew a lot more than I was letting on. "So who's the vegetable?" I chirped.

"Commander Shepard, Alliance Navy. We are in the process of reconstructing her." A long drag from his cigarette, "When we get her back up and running, she will be assigned to investigate mysterious disappearances occurring all across the terminus system, whole human colonies going dark." A puff of smoke, "I want you to accompany her on her mission. If you chose to accept we will provide the necessary training to have you as prepared as you can be for the coming events." He concluded, eyeing me for a reaction.

_Holy shit, he's giving me everything I need to do what I need and want to do, and with no reason. He has to know more than he's letting on, but then again it's Jack Harper, he always knows more than he's letting on. _"Deal." It didn't take a genius to realize that this was exactly the opportunity I needed to help Shepard, practically handed to me on a silver platter. It wasn't even a question of yes or no.

Harper nodded, "Miss Lawson will get you situated, I'll be in touch, Mr. Taylor." With that he cut the call to an abrupt end. The darkness of the QEC room returned, and the door slid open revealing Miranda, hand on a hip, eyeing me for any sort of indication of how the meeting went. I crossed my arms, grinning at her. "Guess you get to show me to my room."

She nodded, "So I take it you accepted his offer. Good. We will be getting to know each other much better in the coming months, Mr. Taylor." She said before walking off, with me following.

"I'm looking forward to it, Miss Lawson." I replied, genuinely meaning what I said. I was practically living a gamer's wet dream right now. Cybernetics, Biotic powers, Military training, ridiculous body, hot guide. Definitely nothing to complain about, but I knew that all this did was tie me to Cerberus. I had to be careful. Jack Harper may have not questioned me much on my origins, but I knew that it was coming, and soon. I would have to fabricate a background story before I was questioned further.

I thought of all the events that were going to unfold around Shepard, and hopefully me in the near future. The collectors and the reapers, Christ I was going to be facing them in reality. That was a scary thought to say the least. I set my jaw and narrowed my eyes slightly, resolving to become the best possible version of myself so that I could help Shepard save as many lives as possible in the coming struggle. I don't know how I got here, but I am going to make the best of it.

**I'm back with a new story and a new fandom, folks! I've been reading so many SI stories lately that I just had to start writing my own, and it seems to be flowing pretty easily. I'll be doing my best to keep to the storyline of Mass Effect 2 without altering the events too drastically. There will be multiple pairings in this story, though between who I have yet to decide. My OC will obviously be pairing up with someone, but aside from that there will be other pairings between canon characters. My OC will try his best to use his knowledge of what is to come in a subtle way. Hence why he did not just burst out with tons of information in front of ol' Timmy. I'm really looking forward to writing this story, however with my A&P class weighing heavily on my time, I will only be able to update every now and then, but I will do my best, that's all I can promise. **

**Please review, it means a whole lot.**

**Slaud**


	2. Chapter 2

I thought of all the events that were going to unfold around Shepard, and hopefully me in the near future. The collectors and the reapers, Christ I was going to be facing them in reality. That was a scary thought to say the least. I set my jaw and narrowed my eyes slightly, resolving to become the best possible version of myself so that I could help Shepard save as many lives as possible in the coming struggle. I don't know how I got here, but I am going to make the best of it.

**Chapter 2**

My father always told me that you could tell a lot about a person by their hands. As I grew up I found it to be a solid piece of wisdom, and took his words to heart. I was sitting on the edge of my new bed in the room Cerberus had given me for the duration of my stay here, wherever here was that is. I mulled over those exact words as I looked down at my hands. My hands used to be covered in the scars I had accumulated from the many blunders I had made in my youth while playing and working with my father. Now, however, my hands were covered in flawless skin that looked as though it had never been put to work. Gone were my callouses, my scars, my identity.

Once Miranda had dropped me off at my new room and left me to get settled in, the reality of what was happening finally sank in to my head, hitting me like a freight train. I been taken from my home in Texas back in the year 2014. Everyone I knew and held dear was dead and gone, for all I knew I would never get to see them again. My heart clenched painfully with that thought. I never even got to say goodbye to my family, and if I was really gone from my world my mother, father, and younger sister were likely completely devastated by my disappearance. I fought hard against the tear that threatened to slip down my cheek, pushing the thoughts aside with a frustrated sigh.

I looked down at my left wrist at the slim metallic band that was clamped snugly around it. Before Miranda had left me alone to my thoughts she had handed it to me. I recognized it as an omni tool almost immediately and had thanked her. I knew these tools were basically essential to surviving in this universe. It was a wallet, a computer, and a phone. I grinned; I had always wanted one of these. My country upbringing aside I had always been a bit of a techie, as well as a gamer, and the idea of having everything I could ever want with me at all times made me a bit giddy. I had spent a little bit messing around with the tool, familiarizing myself with its functions and abilities. It was actually pretty simple, all things considered, and I was able to pick up how to work it without much trouble at all.

I had managed to customize its interface to my liking, even managing to change the entire color of the holographic display to a deep purple, which just happened to be my favorite color. I wondered absently why Bioware never let us customize them in the games.

Speaking of my omni-tool, it beeped once before coming to life revealing a real time image of Miranda's perfect face. "Lawson." I acknowledged.

"Mr. Taylor," She replied in turn before speaking once again, "I am sending you a nav-point, It is time for you to begin your training."

Right one queue another, albeit smaller screen appeared next to the vid call, displaying a map of the facility with a highlighted point as well as a light green arrow that I assumed was to represent myself as well as my direction. I nod, before standing, "Sure thing, I will be right there." I tell her.

"I will meet you there." She says before ending the call abruptly. I chuckle lightly. _All business as usual Miss Lawson. _Heading towards the door I swipe my left hand as I approach the door, and it opens with a quiet 'whoosh' of air, allowing me to head down the hall. I pass many Cerberus Guards and doctors alike, all wearing the same black and grey themed outfits that Cerberus was famous for. As I follow the directions of the omni-tool's GPS my thoughts drift to the background story I had to come up with to keep interested parties off my ass during my stay in this Universe. I already knew that I couldn't just tell the truth. I would end up locked up somewhere, and who knows what people would go through to get more information out of me. _I have to keep my knowledge to myself, and do what I can to help out at the same time. This is going to be harder than I thought. _I frown slightly as I continue to move throughout the facility towards my destination. Shaking my head to rid myself of the troublesome thoughts I arrive at what I guessed was the training room. The door opened without trouble, allowing me access.

My eyes widened slightly as I took in my surroundings. On one wall there was what looked like an entire armory, complete with weapons and armor. The collection ranged from pistols to sniper rifles, as well as many different types of armor ranging from heavier to lighter pieces. Next to the wall was what appeared to be a firing range, which had holographic targets ranging from 10 meters all the way to 100 meters. I suspected they could be moved at will to accommodate for any distance. In the center of the massive room was what looked to be a large black mat, like something you would see at a dojo, and looked like an ideal place to practice hand to hand combat. Opposite the firing range and armory, across the room there were many lockers that each had a number on them, as well as the trademark Cerberus logo. The ceiling was quite high, which gave it an extremely open and welcoming atmosphere.

"I could get used to this place." I say aloud, not hearing the door open behind me.

"Glad it meets your approval." I spin on my heel, looking at Miranda with a raised brow. She was quiet. Not surprising honestly. I grin at her, "I take it I'll be spending quite a lot of time in this place?"

She nods walking towards the weapon wall. "Yes and I will personally be overseeing your training, Mr. Taylor." What she said surprised me greatly; I figured she would be needed elsewhere. I could also detect a bit of resentment in her voice.

"You don't sound too happy with this arrangement." I state the obvious; if I was going to be working with her I wanted to get any bad blood out from between us right off the bat. I knew she would be vital to Shepard's mission in the near future. _Better to have her trust up front. _

"My employer sees you as a valuable asset for some reason, despite your lack of military training and lack of background information." She states. _There it is. I knew they had already looked into my files, or lack thereof._

"Lack of background information?" I queried, feigning ignorance, keeping my face twisted into an expression of curiosity. She stops near the armory wall and looks over her shoulder, raising an elegant eyebrow at me. "Whoever you are, or where, there is no record of you anywhere in the registry. You don't exist." She frowns at that.

"There are a lot of people who don't exist in the citadel registry, Miss Lawson. Especially colonists from the Terminus system." It was true, people were born outside of the system all the time. I figured I could use that as an excuse. I still had no idea how to explain my appearance in the reactor room. I could think of that later.

She regarded me for a long moment before nodding. "You're right. But you are still an unknown and I don't understand why my employer wants me specifically to train you. There are so many more useful things I could be doing." She vents, which surprises me. She was slightly different from the Cerberus operative I knew she was in the games. Her devotion to Cerberus in the games was borderline fanatic.

"For what it's worth I appreciate it. I need the best training I can receive in order to be helpful on the mission I will be helping Shepard with. I get the feeling you're one of the best." My tone was genuine; I knew honesty was the best course of action here.

She grins a little, highlighting her features in a beautiful way. "I am one of the best. Don't you worry Mr. Taylor, I'll have you whipped into shape before you realize it." Her voice had a devious edge to it, and I knew I was in for some seriously rigorous training. "Let's get started. Ever handled a weapon before?"

I nod, grinning. "Once or twice." I respond vaguely. I wasn't really worried about my ability to handle the weapons from this universe. I had grown up in Texas, and grown up around all sorts of guns, learning to use them from an early age. I was a pretty damned good shot, from skeet shooting to hunting.

She picks up a standard pistol, it looked like an m-3 predator pistol. I was actually surprised I remembered that. I hardly ever used the thing. I preferred heavier hitting weapons. Heading over to the range she messes with the console for a moment before two targeting dummies appeared at the 15 meter marker. "Let's see if once or twice can produce some results. Grab a pistol and come on over." Her tone was challenging.

I narrow my eyes at the challenge, having never been one to back down from a competition. "Sure thing, just hope you can keep up." I say, although I knew her familiarity with the thermal weapons would likely trump my own skills. I grabbed another m-3 predator pistol, looking it over before heading over to take my place a foot to her right. She flicked the safety off of her pistol with her thumb in a casual manner before motioning towards my targeting dummy.

Flicking my safety off I brought the gun up, holding it out in front of me with my right arm bent slightly, and my left arm steadying my aim. I pull the trigger and the gun fires, the mass accelerated round pinging the target right in the eye. I grinned; these things didn't kick at all in comparison to the guns from my time. Or maybe I was just that much stronger than I used to be. Only time would tell.

She raises an eyebrow at me as I smirk at her. "How's that for results?" I ask, goading her into showing me what she could do. She didn't disappoint in the slightest, holding her left arm out towards her target dummy, she fired three rounds, each one pinging the forehead to form a small upside down triangle pointing down at the nose.

I laugh aloud, despite her obviously superior shooting. Her lip twitched in what I assumed was amusement before she responded, "Not bad for a rookie, Mr. Taylor. You still have a lot to learn, but not bad." She had me put a few more rounds down range at increasing distances, my aim barely faltering, even managing to hit the target in its head at 50 meters at least once.

After a bit more of analyzing my skills with the pistol, she showed me how to shut off the targeting dummies and we put away our pistols, before she led me out onto the open floor mat.

"Sometimes guns won't be enough to keep you alive, and you need to be ready for any situation that you don't have your guns and need to rely on your hand to hand skills." Her expression was serious as she said this, I knew I had better pay attention to her teachings here, she was supposedly really skilled at hand to hand combat.

I nod to her, barely keeping my excitement at bay. I had always wanted to know how to _really_ fight. Not just the rough street brawling that most people called fighting. "Alright, where do we start?"

She just smirked at me in a cocky fashion, "I want you to try and hit me. Anywhere is fine." She says before dropping into a fighting stance. My eyes trailed over her body quickly. _She's posed to strike in a quick retaliation to any attack I throw at her._ I thought to myself before mentally adding, _and damn does she look good._

I crouched slightly, bringing my hands up to guard my face and upper body. "Alright let's see what you've got Mr. Taylor." She challenged once again.

I narrowed my eyes at her slightly, "I suppose these challenges are going to become a common occurrence?" I questioned her before lashing out with my right leg much faster than I knew I was capable of and with much more force than I intended to put behind it. My large combat boot covered foot connected with her side with a satisfying thud, before the momentum of the kick carried through, sending her flying across the mat in a heap. I blinked in surprise as the momentum of the kick carried me in a complete circle, before stopping. "I just roundhouse kicked the shit out of Miranda Lawson. Shit!"I mutter darkly to myself before rushing over to where she was picking herself up off the ground, holding her left side gingerly.

She looks at me with shock written over her face. "Christ you pack a lot of power. I think you broke a rib." She winces as she finishes.

I shake my head, "I didn't know I had that much power, I really wasn't intending to hurt you." I say hurriedly, my steel grey eyes surely giving away my worry. I didn't like hurting people.

She waves her hand in dismissal, "I needed to know what you were capable of; I wasn't expecting you to attack so quickly." She grins at me, "Don't worry about it, I'll have this fixed in no time and we'll have ourselves a serious match. I know what to expect this time." She assures me.

She grips her side as another lance of pain shoots through her body. "Mind helping me to the med bay?" She asks after a moment of hesitation. I knew she disliked having to ask for help. _I must have hit her harder than she is willing to admit. _

"Sure thing," I say before reaching down and hefting her light body into my arms bridal style, and she clings to my neck in surprise, "Which way to the med bay?" I ask as I head towards the door, not really knowing my way around the facility.

I can tell she has to fight to keep from rolling her eyes at me. "Take a left, third door on the right." She says simply before cringing as she shifts in my arms. I look at her in concern, "Sorry." I mutter, feeling pretty bad about breaking one of her ribs. She looks at me for a moment as if trying to decide of my concern is genuine before she sighs. "It's alright. Like I said I wasn't expecting that."

I grin, cheekily at her, "Guess I passed inspection then?" she narrows her eyes at me, though I can tell she's fighting back a smile. "Yes, we will be working on more advanced counter techniques and the like tomorrow." She says as we arrive at the med bay.

The door opens revealing a white miniature hospital with several beds and a couple of doctors and nurses walking around tending to the few patients in their care. One of the nurses approaches me and directs me to a bed. I set Miranda down on one of the tables, and she sits up, her legs hanging over the edge. "Thanks." She mutters before the doctors and nurses hurry me out of the room. I nod, smiling as I leave.

I return to the training room, and look over the selection of weapons on the wall. "_Guess_ I should go ahead and familiarize myself with all the weapons, going to have to use them eventually." I say to no-one in particular.

Grabbing a large looking rifle from the wall I head to the firing range, setting the targeting dummy to max distance, which was only a hundred meters away. I look over the rifle in my hands, recognizing it as an m-13 Raptor sniper rifle, semi-automatic with a thermal clip capacity of 15.

_Should do for now, though I really do prefer bolt action rifles. Well… in this case single shot rifles. _I think to myself. I had always preferred the mindset behind bolt action sniper rifles, one shot one kill. Hoisting the rifle up, I realized that it was remarkably light and almost felt like an assault rifle, if a bit larger. I look down the scope, taking a deep breath and exhaling slowly and sending a round down the range, hitting the target directly in the forehead. _These guns really don't kick at all. _I think, wondering how anyone could miss with these weapons. I empty the clip, each round hitting the target's head. I grinned in victory, this really was going to be a bit easier than I expected. _I'm going to have to request a single shot sniper rifle._

I return the rifle to the wall and pick up an assault rifle, testing out and then returning it to the wall of weapons. I repeated this process for a while, going through most of the guns, before I became bored, and decided to see if I could figure out how to do something with the biotic abilities that I evidently possess. Moving out onto the sparring mat I stand in the middle, closing my eyes in concentration, trying to find something that felt different in my body. It took me roughly 10 minutes before I found what I was looking for. It felt strange to me, but also natural at the same time. _Now how do I bring it out? _I wonder to myself before 'reaching' out to it, trying to draw it out. Whatever it was reacts more than I expected it to and I open my eyes, realizing that my hands were glowing, dark blue, which was the signature color of a biotic. I stare at my hands in awe, turning them over and admiring the way the biotic power washed over my hands without qualms, flickering like fire.

"Well this is awesome." I say aloud, grinning wickedly at my new discovery. I rear back my fist and swing forward with as much force as I can muster, thinking about a biotic punch and how it looked in the games. As I complete the punch the dark energy explodes outwards creating a shockwave that moved across the room almost instantly and smashed into the wall, exploding. I gape as the reinforced wall buckles in shaking the entire room, leaving the metal panel in ruin. "Right. Gotta be extremely careful with that shit." I mutter to myself before laughing. This was awesome!

I shake my hands, ridding it of the biotic flames, willing them to go away with a thought. These things were controlled a lot easier than I thought they would be. I spend a little while longer testing out the biotic punch, doing my best to not destroy anything else and quickly learning I could put different amounts of force behind the attack with little more than a simple thought. It was definitely a handy technique that would no doubt save my life someday.

After a while I retire to my room, having memorized the path on my way to the training room earlier. Entering my room I strip off my shirt and head over to the body length mirror next to my bed, looking over my new body. I still had mostly the same face, the same strong jawline and piercing grey eyes, but the stubble that covered my chin was a lot thicker than I remember, and my face seemed to have filled out more, and the small traces of acne I used to have were gone. _Convenient. _It was my only thought as I looked over my face. I still had the same short brown hair that I was accustomed to looking at in my reflection.

Moving down my body I flexed different muscles. Every muscle was hyper responsive in comparison to what I was used to, and it looked like I had been chiseled out of stone. It was quite impressive honestly, but definitely something I would have to get used to. I shook my head, before flopping down on the bed and opening my omni-tool. I pulled up the extranet and started browsing, reviewing the happenings of the past 150 years, including information that I already knew about such as the Prothean ruins discovered on mars and the attack on the citadel a year prior to now.

I was tempted to search for information on my family but resisted. _Cerberus is likely monitoring everything I do, including my browsing on the extranet. I have to be careful. _I reasoned to myself.

My omni-tool beeped, before displaying a message from Miranda. I opened it and looked over it quickly.

_Mr Taylor the Doctors have fixed my broken ribs. Yeah, Ribs. Plural. You kick really hard in case you didn't already realize that. Anyways, I expect to see you in the training room at 0700 hours tomorrow morning. Don't be late. _

_Miranda Lawson._

I chuckled quietly to myself, before stripping down into my boxers and flopping back down on the bed again. I figured I would get some extra sleep. I had a feeling I would need it in the coming months of training.

**Thanks for the positive feedback on the last chapter. I decided to go ahead and push the next chapter out and forgot studying for a few hours as I wrote this. Hope you all enjoy!**

**Slaud**


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

I ducked and dodged, relying purely on my instinct to evade the rapid fire of devastatingly powerful blows flying towards my person without hesitation. _Miranda sure does like putting me through my paces. _I thought warily as I caught one of her small fists in my own large hands, my opposite fist flying towards her exposed midsection without hesitation. We were sparring for what felt like the hundredth time in the past two weeks. She was really worked up this time, I couldn't help but wonder what it was that had set her off today as she twisted around my fist, her leg lashing out, knocking me back with surprising force. I regained my footing and settled back into a stance, my eyes focused on her form as she started circling me.

"What's got you so worked up today Miranda?" I asked, before grinning. "Trying to make up for losing yesterday?" I teased. I had beaten her the past few times we had sparred, which had surprised both of us greatly, I learned quickly, and my new body was above and beyond in terms of strength and speed. After the first time we attempted sparring where I broke a few of her ribs, she came back the next morning and had me flat on my ass before I knew what had happened. I wrinkled my nose, remembering how she had broken it. "Come on then, let's see what you've got." I mimicked one of her previous taunts. _That did it._ I saw her whole body tense before she shot towards me, fist cocked back, glowing slightly with her biotic powers as she infused her punch with energy. I narrowed my eyes and twisted my body to the side, avoiding the powerful biotic blow that dented the floor.

Taking advantage of her momentary pause as she registered that she had missed I spun on my heel, swinging my leg around in an arc down towards her figure. She rolled to the side just in time as my boot's heel made a crater out of the large dent she had made. She crouched low, eyeing me critically before finally responding, "You're improving much faster than I thought you would, I guess I didn't expect you to start beating me so quickly." She frowned at her own words, before jumping up in the air towards me, her foot flying towards my face. I wasn't quite fast enough to evade the blow and the tip of her boot caught my jaw, snapping my head back and making my ears ring. I stumbled back, shaking my head, trying to rid myself of the annoying ringing sensation without avail. Before I could register what was happening I was looking up at the high ceiling of the training room, a view I had become quite accustomed to in the past two weeks, and she was on top of me, her elbow jammed up against my throat.

As my vision cleared I saw her grinning at me. She looked rather smug. More than that, I noticed how the light from the ceiling framed her long black hair in a dazzling fashion. I took a moment to appreciate the view of the feminine perfection above me. My eyes must have betrayed what I was thinking because her eyes widened slightly before she hastily pulled off of me and stood up, not bothering to offer me help up. Not that I needed it.

As I stood up her voice reached my ears, my head now mostly clear, "I think that's enough for today." She said, her breathing slightly elevated from our little spar.

Nodding in agreement, I shake my head, willing the dull ache that had settled in my skull to go away. I wasn't succeeding very well. "I'd almost prefer you break a rib or two next time rather than hit me in the head so hard." I said; my tone light.

She cast me a sideways glance, and I saw her lip twitch slightly upwards into the ghost of a smile. "You really are exceeding my expectations Mr. Taylor." She said, and I could detect a small amount of pride in her voice. That made me smile genuinely, nodding my appreciation towards her. It wasn't every day the ice queen passed out compliments, most of the time she was too busy kicking my ass to pass those out.

"So what am I supposed to do for the rest of the day?" I ask curiously as we head towards the exit.

"The Illusive Man wishes to speak with you again." She stated matter-of-factly. I don't respond, merely falling into step beside her as we headed towards the Quantum Entanglement Communication room. I was wracking my brain, making sure I knew my 'background' as well as I could. I had come up with a suitable cover story a few nights ago, and was now prepared for most questions aimed at me about my past. Hopefully my answers would be enough. They had to be.

Like last time Miranda waited outside as I stepped into the dark room onto the QEC platform. The scanning seemed to happen faster this time, and before long I was looking at the Illusive Man once again.

"Mr. Taylor." He greeted, his cybernetic eyes glowing lightly as he gazed at me. _Jesus this guy sounds exactly like in the games. Those eyes are stupidly creepy._ I thought to myself as I met his gaze evenly.

"Illusive Man." I greeted back, my gaze hardening slightly as I waited for him to speak. I didn't have to wait too long though. As soon as he took a drag from his cigarette and swapped it to his other hand he spoke, "Your training is moving along faster than I originally anticipated, and your biotic powers certainly are remarkable for a human. This is good news." He states, as if reading off of a list. _Hell he likely is. Miranda has probably been feeding him in depth reports of my training. _I mentally shook myself. Of course she was. She was loyal to him and Cerberus to a fault.

I nod, as if to confirm the facts he was spewing, "I must admit I am a bit surprised at my own capabilities myself. This new body is… well it's amazing. It seems I never thanked you for it so I'll do so now." I pause before continuing, holding eye contact with him, "Thanks for saving me."

His glowing cybernetic eyes locked onto my own and he nodded, "You can thank me by helping Shepard investigate these human colony disappearances when the time comes and by being ready when it does." He brings up a screen between the two of us and I gasp slightly. "Shepard." I whisper. I could make out her face, though it was badly scarred, and the rest of her body seemed to be still under heavy construction.

I tear my eyes away from the vid screen and look at the illusive man, "How much longer do you think it will take for the reconstruction process to be completed?" I ask. I knew how much longer it would take, but I couldn't afford to let him think I did.

"Miss Lawson informs me that Shepard's major organs are functional, and that they are only working on the finer details now. I expect her to be fully functional in a few months." Timmy states before taking another long drag from his cigarette and closing the vid screen. We stare at each other for a moment before he speaks again, "Mr. Taylor you know by now that you don't exist in the citadel's registry, and there are no records on your existence of any kind." He snubs out his cigarette, looking at me as he does so, "Could you explain to me why that is?"

It was a seemingly innocent question, but I knew I had to phrase my answer very carefully. This was dangerous territory and a slip up could be very detrimental to my chances of helping Shepard. I nod, not letting too much time pass before responding, "I was born and raised on a colony in the terminus system. The colony operated outside of the Alliance and there were many of us born there that were never entered into the system. I would honestly be surprised if there –was- any record of my existence." I lie smoothly. I had always prided myself on my ability to keep a straight face, and it was coming in handy right about now.

The glow from another cigarette illuminated the man's face as he regards me; I could tell he was going to believe me or not. Either way I had a feeling he wouldn't really push the issue. _I hope anways. _I offered up a silent prayer in hopes that it worked.

"It makes sense, people show up all the time without records of any kind. It's nearly impossible to keep tabs on everyone in the universe." He replies finally. I let loose a breath of air I didn't realize I had been holding. "But that doesn't explain how you ended up inside one of our reactor rooms."

_Fuck. That came out of nowhere._ I shook my head before replying. "I wish I could answer that, really I do. But I have no idea how I ended up there, or the events prior to me ending up inside that reactor room." I reply, telling the truth for once.

To my surprise he simply nods, "I expected as much. The amount of Element Zero and Radiation you were exposed to should have killed you, so it's not out of the question that you suffered some memory loss from the incident."

_He didn't say accident. _I wondered to myself if that was on purpose or not. Either way I wouldn't figure it out right now. I sigh audibly, "I wish I did know how I ended up here, it would put my mind at ease." I say honestly.

"Well if you remember anything be sure to let Miss Lawson know." He says before moving on to the next topic, "With your training progressing so rapidly, it won't be long before you are fully mission ready. Miss Lawson has informed me that you are highly proficient with both firearms and hand to hand combat, and that your biotic powers are devastating. This is just the kind of news I had hoped to hear, you're turning out to be a wise investment Mr. Taylor. Keep up the good work." He says before ending the call, and the room returned to normal.

I shake my head in a sense of dry amusement._ That man lies so much that his nose should be six feet long. I know he's hiding something about what happened to me. If anyone knows about how I got here it would have to be him. It's the only logical explanation._ I reason to myself, going over what I knew about how I ended up in this world.

Coming out of the QEC room I shake my head, dispelling the thoughts that were running around in my head as Miranda approached me. "The illusive man is very pleased with the results of your training Miss Lawson." I smile at her as she stops in front of me, "So am I, honestly. I've learned a lot in the past two weeks training with you." I genuinely was impressed.

She nods in appreciation at me as she replies, "Thank you Mr. Taylor. You learn rather quickly. But I will agree, I am a great teacher aren't I?" she smirks at me and I return a grin of my own.

A moment passes before I shake my head, still grinning, "So are we done training for the day?" I ask, hoping that I could get some extra rest tonight. She nods, "Yes. We are done for today Mr. Taylor. I have some paperwork I have to take care of. I will see you tomorrow morning at the usual time."

I smile at her, "Alright, I'll see you then Miss Lawson. Have a nice day." I really had been trying to get on her good side, she was going to be a very important part to Shepard's team and beyond that I knew she was a genuinely good person beneath her cold exterior. I couldn't quite tell if it was paying off yet, only time would tell. We part ways after that, with Miranda heading off god only knows where and myself back to my room. I had been pushing, or rather Miranda had been pushing my new body to its breaking point in the past two weeks, and I really wanted to take advantage of this little break I was being given. "Time to get some rest." I said aloud to no-one in particular as I shed my clothes and collapsed on my bed. It wasn't the softest or most comfortable bed but it got the job done. _June 3__rd__, I've been conscious for two weeks now, so… Shepard wakes up some time in the latter part of September. So roughly four months until the Lazarus Project is complete. I have to make these months count. I –have- to be prepared for this or I could end up getting killed, or worse than that fuck up and get someone else killed. _I shake my head, willing the troublesome thoughts away and rolled over onto my side facing the wall and closed my eyes. _Time for me to get some shuteye. _

**July 3****rd****, 2185 1300 hours. One month later.**

I smash my fist into the mat of the training room, causing the large amount of dark energy gathered around my fist to explode outward in a large area around me. The floor ripples and the room shakes. I pant heavily as I rise from my crouched position, surveying the damage around me. The area around me was completely destroyed. The metal panels beneath the floor mat were buckling up causing the mat to jut up at awkward angles all over. I chuckle softly, looking towards Miranda who stood off to the side, "Good thing Cerberus has a lot of cash to throw around." I joke.

She frowns slightly, her face a mask of disapproval. "You know if you keep doing that we're going to have to find another place for you to train." She says, shaking her head.

I shrug non-committedly, "Well it's not like the cost of repairing this room a couple times could ever compare to the amount Cerberus threw into giving me a new body." It was true, the amount of money they had spent on me wasn't anything close to what they were spending on Shepard, but it was still way more money than I would ever see in this universe.

"Point conceded, Mr. Taylor." She replies, causing me to frown. I was getting tired of her being so formal around me. She'd been training with me for a month and a half now, and I really was having trouble getting her to drop the façade she gave everyone else. "Let's get some more practice in with your biotics." She reaches a hand out and grabs one of the practice crates from the corner of the room with her biotics. I stretch quickly before getting into a ready position, preparing to catch the heavy crates. A few weeks ago Miranda had these crates added to the training room, and each one of them weighed roughly 200 kg. She had come up with many different exercises with them, allowing me to stretch my biotic powers to their limit and beyond, greatly increasing my competency and strength.

She holds the crate out beside her for a moment as our eyes lock, her icy blue orbs attempting to pierce into my steely grey ones. I saw her eyes flash, or at least I thought I did, and the crate flew forward towards me on the other side of the room. I reached out with my biotics and caught it in a secure grip, spinning around to use the momentum to slingshot it back at Miranda. It flew faster this time and she threw up both her hands, glowing with dark energy as she Forced the crate to stop, but not before sliding back a foot. She reaches thrusts forward with both arms, shoving the crate back at me, and I meet her in the middle with my own powers. We stalemate, each of us struggling to overwhelm the other with pure force.

I look at her above the crate, my eyes narrowed in concentration as we struggle, "Come on Lawson, is that the best you've got?!" I challenge, growling and pushing forward with a mighty shove, causing the crate to move a few feet towards her. "Not on your life, Taylor." She growls in return, before her biotics flare around her and she overwhelms me, causing the crate to fly towards me once again. It was 10 meters away before an idea popped into my head and I acted on it without really thinking too much. My biotics flare brightly as my body seems to warp, surging forward my fist connects with a massive amount of force. The crate changes direction with a loud boom, and Miranda's eyes widen.

"Shit!" I hear her exclaim as she dives out of the way of the crate as it sails into the wall on the opposite side of the room, the force of the impact causing the crate to explode and whatever it was made out of to fragment. I straighten up, my eyes widening slightly. "Well that wasn't what I was expecting." Miranda's voice once again reaches my ears and I trot over to her as she picks herself up off the floor. "What was that?" she asks curiously as she looks over at the wall where the pieces of the crate lay in ruin.

I shrug, grinning. "Not entirely sure, I just used my biotics to move forward and punch it. I figured with enough force I could change its direction. Super effective apparently." I grin at my reference that she wouldn't get. I knew what I had just done and was really excited that I had finally pulled it off. The trademark Biotic Charge.

She looks at me for a moment before smirking, "Quick thinking allowed you to win the power struggle. Well done Mr. Taylor." She praised seriously, before grabbing two crates with her biotics and throwing them into the air above me, "Catch." Is all she said as I looked up to see the two heavy objects falling towards me; and I throw my hands above me, stopping them both a foot over my head and holding them there. "Now I want you to hold them there as long as possible." She said before walking towards the armory wall.

_What's she doing? _I wondered to myself. I couldn't see her at this angle. I had performed this exercise a million times it seemed like, but it was still a good endurance exercise. *Click* I heard the safety of a gun being disengaged and spun around, facing Miranda who was pointing a pistol directly at me. "I want you to keep your barrier up while you hold those crates."

_What? That's crazy! _I screamed in my head as she pulled the trigger twice, causing me to hastily throw up my barrier, deflecting the bullets and draining a bit of my strength. The crates seemed to get heavier and a bead of sweat rolled down the side of my face. "Nice job, now let's see if you can keep it up." She pulled the trigger four more times, each round bouncing off of my barrier harmlessly, but draining my strength even further. _I don't remember the crates weighing this much before. _I thought as I strained to keep them in the air. She pulled the trigger until the heat sink popped out of the gun, leaving me panting heavily with sweat trailing all over my body. "Don't drop them, Mr. Taylor, we're not done yet." She said, grinning evilly as she popped another heat sink into the gun, and continues firing." I could feel each round against the barrier, and by the time that clip was emptied I was left drenched in sweat, my legs shaking as I held the crates above me.

She stared at me for a long moment before grinning, "That's enough, you may return the crates to the pile." She ordered as she returned to the armory to put the gun up. I slowly moved the crates through the air and set them atop the pile of remaining crates before collapsing down onto a knee, breathing heavily. _That took a lot more effort than I thought. _My biotics were much stronger than the average biotic but that was pushing it. "Did you come up with that torture on your own, Lawson?" I asked as she walked back over to me, putting a hand on her hip smirking.

"Yes I did, actually. What do you think? Looks like you got quite the workout." I could hear the smugness in her voice as she spoke and I looked up at her, narrowing my eyes and frowning for good measure. "I think if you're trying to kill me you're going about it the right way." I reply between pants.

My only response was a little laugh and an offered bottle of water. "Good job today, Mr. Taylor. Your skills really are quite remarkable." My frown lifts into a smile, it was nice to receive compliments from her. It meant I was getting somewhere both in my training and with her.

"Thanks Lawson, can't imagine I would have made this far without your help though." I unscrew the cap to the bottle and drain it quickly. "That exercise going to become common?" I question, honestly a little afraid of the answer."

She nods, her evil smirk reappearing, "Yes, it will help with your endurance on the battlefield, can't have you tiring out after only a little bit of action, now can we?" she replies coolly and my eyes widen slightly, catching onto the innuendo. I look up at her and grin, "If I'm the first one to tire out in the middle of the action I wouldn't really be that useful now would I? I'm hoping you can help me out in that department." I reply with a cheeky grin, choosing to play along with the innuendo.

She coughs, realizing that she had made an innuendo and I see a little bit of color in her cheeks, causing me to mentally cheer. _Fucking finally got her to blush. _Clearing her throat she nods, "I will have you ready for the _battlefield_ Mr. Taylor. Don't you worry about it."

I grin, before sitting down on the mat on one of the less angled parts. She joins me, sitting across from me with her legs crossed. Looking at me oddly she speaks, "So what is your first name, Mr. Taylor?"

I raise an eyebrow at her, having not expected that question from her. "My first name is Alex, why do you ask Miranda?" I ask, genuinely curious as to why she was finally asking me the question and so randomly.

"Well, we've been working together for a month and a half now, and you've only given me your last name and a general idea of where you were from." She replies, shifting a little.

"Well if you have questions I'll answer them to the best of my ability, don't be afraid to ask." I say, making sure she could see the sincerity in my eyes. "I have a feeling we're going to be working together for a long while so I think it would be best to get to know each other. I would like to know who exactly it is that saves my ass on the battlefield." I joke lightly, hoping to break the ice a little more.

She looks at me for a moment, before her icy blue eyes seem to soften a little, and she smiles. "Well in that case I will take you up on that offer." She pauses as if thinking, before continuing, "Alright Alex, you grew up on a colony, but what did you do before ending up here?" Her eyes were bright with curiosity.

I look down, thinking about my time before being pulled into this universe. I had been a sophomore in college, working when I could and doing my best to succeed in school. I spent a lot of time helping my ailing father out with whatever he wanted to do. I look back up at her, "I helped my father out with his work. We ran a store in our town. Didn't really have much free time, but it was peaceful, honest life." I say, doing my best to not alter my story too much.

She thinks for a moment before asking another question; "Makes me wonder how you could have ended up here. Do you still not have any idea how you ended up in that reactor room?" I shake my head, "Not a clue. I wish I did though, it has been eating me up on the inside not knowing." I reply honestly. It was. What bothered me more was me not knowing what happened to my family when I disappeared.

"Where'd you learn how to handle a gun, doesn't sound like you'd have access to many firearms?" She asks after another pause, which causes me to smile a bit. "My dad loves weapons. He taught me everything I know about them. Well most of it anyways. You've taught me a bit in the past month and a half." It was true, my dad loved guns. We had a gun safe filled with all sorts of different weapons, and he had given me my first weapon before I turned 10.

"I suppose that makes sense, your dad sounds like a good man." She says, though I hear a bit of jealousy in her voice, reminding me that her own father was a complete prick. I fake confusion, "He is. What about yours?" I ask softly, not wanting to make her shut me out. That would be counterproductive.

I see her stiffen considerably and her eyes harden. _Seems like I hit a sore spot. _I mentally chuckle to myself. She speaks slowly, as if unsure about telling me anything, "He was… hard on me. He wanted a son, and I spent the first part of my life trying to be what he wanted me to be, the perfect heir. Then I ran away and I've never looked back." She finishes with a sigh. I smile softly at her, "I understand if you don't want to talk about it. Everyone has a past to bury. I'm here if you want to talk though." I Say simply, before letting it drop. She looks grateful for a moment before her façade settles on her face once again and she stands up.

I follow her to my feet as she speaks, "We're done for today, you have tomorrow off, but the day after tomorrow I want to see you in here at 0800." She turns and heads towards the door but pauses when I speak up, "Alright, I'll see you later Miranda." At first it seems like she isn't going to reply and simply walk out, but she looks over her shoulder and I see a ghost of a smile, "Later Alex." She replies, and then she vanishes through the door.

I grin to myself, stretching a little. _Finally getting somewhere with her. Would be pretty awesome to actually date Miranda Lawson. _I think to myself as I head through the door, grabbing a towel to hang over my neck on the way back to my room. _Alright, time to get a shower and some food. _

**Alright! Here's the next chapter, hope you folks like it. I think I've decided who Alex will be pairing up with eventually. Miranda definitely will not be pairing up with Timmy. I hate that creepy old bastard. Sorry to anyone that disappoints. Hope you enjoy the story regardless. This is the longest chapter I have ever written, and this story is officially the longest fanfiction I have written, and it will keep going. **

**Till the next chapter,**

**Slaud**


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